Finding the Comic Book Shop That Is Right For You

While writing last week’s post I got to thinking about the local comic shops, sometimes referred to as an LCS, and the factors one should consider when choosing a comic shop. Currently the majority of my ordering takes place from a company online but I still have a pull list at both Aquilonia and Earthworld here in the Albany area.

Throughout my years in the comic book hobby I have visited many comic stores across the country. When I travel and have the free time I like to visit the local comic store(s) in the area. In my travels I have come across some really nice stores and others that you couldn’t pay me to ever set foot in again. Choosing a LCS is a personal choice, more so than deciding between Hannaford and Price Chopper when buying groceries. Reading and collecting comics is a niche market and comic shops can be few and far between meaning one could be “stuck” with whatever is nearby. If you are fortunate to have more than one LCS in the area chances are the merchandise will be the same, from place to place but he store itself will determine if you become a regular customer. If you are new to reading comics or have your interest piqued by reading this blog then here are some tips to help you choose a Comic shop that is the right fit for you:

With the help of my fellow Comic Book Laundry crew we came up with a few criteria that we consider when choosing a comic book store:

Overall presentation of the shop

Staff (helpful and knowledge)

Selection (New comics, back issues /Trade paperbacks, Reserve list )

The atmosphere of the comic shop sets the tone for the visit. The cliché comic book store is a horrible, musty hole in the ground with the décor of an adolescent male’s fantasy. Personally I prefer a clean, organized, and well lit store with ample room to move around and browse but have run into the later in my travels. The outside of the store should also be inviting and have something to grab the attention of people on the street. The picture is of a shop over in Massachusetts visited by Mike Y. The painting of Kamandi on the side of the building is awesome and makes me want to visit the shop. One of the shops I used to frequent during graduate school would take different action figures and pose them along with word balloons announcing the weekly releases or some other comics related non sequester. Also the atmosphere should be one where the customer is able to browse through the different comics without being hassled by the staff. One shop I went to once had a huge sign that said “This is not a library, please do not read the books.” Now I can understand that there are some who might do this but I doubt it is many. I think the reason I did not return to the shop was that while looking through a book I was considering to purchase the guy behind the counter told me to either buy it or put it back on the rack. Was I reading the book? No I was not but merely checking out the art and seeing if what I could tell about the story was of interest to me. This brings me to my next point…

The next factor to consider is the manager and staff who are responsible for running the store. The first thing that comes to mind when I think about a comic book store owner is Jeff Albertson, who is better known as Comic Book Guy from The Simpsons. This character, based on”every comic-bookstore guy in America,” is owner of The Android’s Dungeon & Baseball Card Shop, and mistreats customers with a heavily sarcastic tone and “superior knowledge “. Matt Groening, creator of The Simpson’s has even said in interviews that Comic Book Guy was partly inspired by a clerk at the Los Angeles Amok book shop who often “[sat] on the high stool, kind of lording over the store with that supercilious attitude and eating behind the counter a big Styrofoam container full of fried clams with a lot of tartar sauce.” The staff can also fall into the trap of acting superior and belittling people who are checking out the store. A friend of mine who used to run a store here in the Capitol District believes that comic books would be more generally accepted if the comic geeks and owners that staff the stores would not behave like “sub-culture frat boys”. Not everyone believes the sun rises and sets on a particular writer, artist or publisher, nor do they have years of experience reading comics themselves. He also mentioned that he found by treating anyone who walked through his doors as though they belonged, it went a long way toward bringing in the “outlying” fan (spouses, girlfriends, boyfriends, parents, etc.) or at the very least it helped diminish the stereotype held by many of the “comic shop as man-cave for the socially inept.” To a new customer the staff may seem to be distant and unfriendly at first but the more visits to the store to shop the more likely they are to recognize you, talk to you, get to know your likes and dislikes so that they can make suggestions of new titles that might be of interest . Building a relationship is a two-way street but if the customer does not feel welcome or comfortable interacting with the staff then it will never exist. It is important that the staff make an attempt to be friendly and helpful to everyone who enters the store, be they a regular or first time customer.

The last factor is probably more important for the established fan but also for those interested in getting into the hobby is the selection of comics and related paraphernalia available for purchase. For an LCS the once-a-week customers with a pull list are the core customers for the brick-and-mortar comic book store. Because this group is a shrinking market, not a growing one, and the retailer must order his stock by calculating the number of customers who are going to want a particular issue on the day of release (or, at least, within a few days of release) along with an appropriate number of books for the walk in customer. Many stores offer a pull box so that they know to order a particular title for the customer. This allows the store to order your books and hold them for you until you can get there to get them. Most times buy starting a pull list the shop will offer a discount on the books which will hopefully encourage you to try items of the shelf. The selection of back issues and Trade Paperbacks are also important if the reader wants to find out what has been happening to a character in the past, yet the regular comics may not be available or to pricey as single issues.

Going to your Local Comic Shop (LCS) should always be something to look forward to, not something that’s a chore. What you should really look for is a place that is going to offer consistency and a pleasant experience. A visit to the LCS should be a chance to meet and talk with others who share in the hobby. If the demeanor of a store is more standoffish or not contributing to your enjoyment of reading , find another store, where you will be welcomed and someone will take the time to help. It will probably take a time and multiple visits to honestly appraise a store, but you will know when the right for you as long as you give it a chance.

2 Responses

I think Sheldon Cooper put it best when he said “You know, I can buy all this stuff online. I come here for the service.” It would behoove comic book retailers to abide by this. The ones who treat their stores as clubhouses will snob themselves out of business.

WORST STORE EVER
EarthWolrd OWNER JC is RUDE & DISRESPECTFUL
SOLD ME A KEY BOOK WITH MISSING PAGES
JUST GO ONLINE ITS CHEAPER

I went into EarthWorld Comics on multiple occasions from 10/14/2013 – 11/1/2013, and spent over $2000. On one visit I spent $1400, and on the second I spent $650. I purchased ANY Silver Age Key issue he had.

Thinking there was nothing wrong with the Comic Books, I left EarthWorld Comics and started reading the Amazing Spiderman issue #11. Working my way up through all the titles I purchased.

About 3 weeks after I was cataloging my entire collection, not just Comic Books, for insurance purposes. I decided to make a PDF file and organize all my books in Alpha-Numeric order with grades as well.

On 11/14/2013, Since I do not consider myself an expert grader, I brought in 12 of the books to EarthWorld Comics that I purchased from Owner JC personally so he could help me grade them. HE FLAT OUT REFUSED ME and insisted I do it myself.

Upon grading them myself, I finally reached the Amazing Spiderman issue #47, after days, since I had to give my self a crash course in grading. I have a very busy life so I dont sit and read Comic Books all day, otherwise I would have noticed issue #47 of the Amazing Spiderman had missing pages and loose pages. When I reached issue #47, I noticed pages 3 and 4 were missing, also pages 14 and 15 were not attached to the book. I was sure if I brought it back to EarthWorld Comics the Owner JC woukd just let me take another book that had a $35.00 price tag on it. Honest mistake, people make them all the time I thought to myself.

On 11/20/2013, I went to EarthWorld Comics with the Incomplete Issue #47 of the Amazing Spiderman. Immediately, Owner JC denied it was ever his book. “That’s not my book!”, Was his reply without even a pause after I said it was incomplete. I assured him it was his book as I have not purchased any comic books from anywhere else since then. He was obstinate and continued saying “Once you buy it it’s yours. It’s been 3 weeks, how do I know?”. He then walked away from the counter and started digging through books. I stood there for about 15 seconds in confusion.

I then looked over at him and said “Are you calling me a liar? Because I can assure you that this is your book. You sold it to me. If I was trying to pull something here, I would have come with a price tag of $250, not $35.” He walked back to the counter and actually took a look at the book he was so sure wasn’t his.

After seeing the missing pages and loose pages he said, “I would never sell something like this. I would have noticed something like this”. After arguing with him for about 10 mins, he finally said “Fine, I’ll give you $15 store credit that’s it.”.

I replied “Your not being fair, you could easily exchange this out for me because you know I am not lying to you. This has a $35 price tag on it, I should get something of equal value. I think that is fair.”

He replied “Fine, I’ll give you $15 cash, final offer. Take it or leave it! Why should I give you anything more?” While he said take it or leave it, he slammed his hand down on the counter. I didn’t think much of it. But I did not think he would get violent either!

I said to him “JC, it’s not about the money, it’s about the principal. I am not trying to pull any funny business, I just want something of equal value because that is fair! ITS ABOUT GOOD BUSINESS!”. He barely let me talk, talking over me so I had to repeat every word multiple times. Openly being rude, aggressive, and disrespectful.

He then reached over the counter and grabbed the Comic Book, that I was holding in my hand! He gave a tug and said “Give me the book!”. Then he gave a second pulled so hard the comic ripped right out of my hands while he said loudly “GIVE ME THE DAMN BOOK!”. He took the comic and threw it very hard on the floor behind him, making a big rattle in the process.

I said “What the hell are you doing?!? Give me my book back!”. He reached in his pocket and put $35 on the table. I said “It’s not about the money, I dont even want to do business with someone who would treat me like that! Just give me my book back, I don’t want your money!”

He replied “I don’t EVER want to see you in my store EVER again! Get out of my store NOW or I will call the cops on you!”. He said this to me, for trying to exchange an incomplete book that he sold me worth only $35! What kind of person does that.

I did not want anything more to do with Earthworld Comics or the Owner JC, so I took the $35 he put on the table and said while I walked out “WOW, I can’t believe thst just happened!” I really wanted to leave the money on the table, but giving that man another penny would not sit right with me.

I finally understand why everyone told me to not shop there. Honestly just go online its MUCH CHEAPER.
There are also many local dealers without store fronts with much better prices.

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